Ten Favorite Japanese Expressions

Life is full of ki-do-ai-raku (kee-doh-ah-ee-rah-koo; delight-anger-sorrow-fun), and some phrases slip out of our mouths repeatedly in response to different daily situations. Master these common Japanese expressions and use them casually to sound like a native.

Yatta
(yaht-tah; I did it!) Say yatta when you accomplish something big, receive a great opportunity, or feel victorious. Passing a difficult test, getting the job you wanted, or winning the lottery these all qualify as yatta material.

Hont
(hohn-tohh; Really?) Say hont to confirm what you've just heard. Suppose your colleague tells you that she's getting married to your boss. Respond to the news by saying hont. What if your friend says that he'll give his car to you for free? Say hont before saying thank you. You can say hont in a lot of situations in your daily life because so many unbelievable things happen every day.

, s desu ka
(ahh, sohh deh-soo kah; Oh, I see.) Say , s desu ka every time your conversational partner provides a new piece of information. You need to acknowledge each new bit of info by saying, Oh, I see. Be sure to nod as you say this expression. If you talk casually with a Japanese person, you may use this phrase 200 times in one hour.

Mochiron
(moh-chee-rohn; Of course!) This is the favorite adverb of confident people. Use it when you're 100 percent confident in your opinion. If you were a married man, how would you answer this question, posed to you by your wife: Would you marry me if you had a chance to do it all over again? A word of advice: Don't think about it; just say mochiron to her because you only live once, and you'll never actually be faced with the decision.

, yokatta
(ahh, yoh-kaht-tah; Oh, good.) Say , yokatta every time you feel like saying What a relief or Oh, good. If you're Mr. or Ms. Worrier, you may say , yokatta ten times a day: Did I turn off the stove? Yes, you did. , yokatta. My daughter was kidnapped!

No, she's right there behind you. , yokatta.

Zenzen
(zehn-zehn; Not at all.) Zenzen is the phrase of denial. Suppose that someone asks you, "Am I disturbing you?" when they're not bothering you at all. Say zenzen and shake your head. Suppose that your spouse or friend asks whether you understand why he or she is so mad. If you don't have any idea, say zenzen, if you have the courage.

Nani
(nah-nee; What?) Nani is a question word. It's handy when you talk with a Japanese person. Say nani when you don't hear or understand what the other person said. You can also say nani when you can't believe or don't like what you hear. For example, your fiance suddenly announces, "I'm getting married to Tom." If your name is Frank, you can surely say nani.That's assuming you have the ability to form words at that point.

Dshiy
(dohh-shee-yohh; What shall I do?) Say dshiy when you're in a panic and have no idea what to do. You can repeat it over and over while you try to think of what to do: Dshiy, dshiy, dshiy. Now, you sound like you're in big trouble. What happened? Oh, you've locked your car door with your keys and your coat inside?!

, bikkurishita
(ahh, beek-koo-ree-shee-tah; What a surprise!) Say , bikkurishita when you're very surprised. Is your family known for throwing surprise parties? If so, say , bikkurishita after they shout out Surprise on your birthday.

Yappari
(yahp-pah-ree; I knew it would happen.) Sometimes you have a vague suspicion that something will happen, and then it actually happens. At times like that, say yappari. Suppose that you haven't received a newspaper for the last month, but the newspaper delivery person says that he has dropped it off in front of your door every day. One day, you wake up earlier than usual, and you see your neighbor picking up your newspaper. If you had a suspicion that your neighbor was up to something, say yappari.

Forming Sentences in Japanese

Welcome to Japanese! To practice the language, work with your family, your close friends, or even your pets until you get the chance to talk with a Japanese person. The more you apply a language in your daily life, the better you grasp its essence. With this article, you can start forming a Japanese sentence in just five minutes no joke! When you begin speaking in Japanese, don't be afraid of making mistakes and be sure to keep smiling. If you speak even a little bit of their language, Japanese people will open their hearts to you right away and appreciate your effort. Simply making the effort to communicate in another person's language is one of the best ways to act as an ambassador and contribute to international.

Presenting the basic construction

The basic word order in English is subject-verb-object, but the order in Japanese is subject-object-verb. Instead of saying I watched TV, you say I TV watched. Instead of saying I ate sushi, say I sushi ate. Now you know the pattern. So repeat after me: Put the verb at the end! Verb end! Verb end! Go ahead and try it! I sake drank, I karaoke did, and I money lost! Good, you the basic word order in Japanese have.

Introducing particles
Subject-object-verb is the basic word order in Japanese, but object-subject-verb is also okay. As long as the verb is at the end of the sentence, Japanese grammar teachers are happy. For example, if Mary invited John, you can say either Mary John invited or John Mary invited in Japanese. Like I said, as long as the verb is at the end, the order of other phrases doesn't matter. Although it sounds great, a smart person like you may be saying, "Wait a minute! How do you know who invited whom?" The secret is that Japanese use a little tag called a particle right after each noun phrase. The particle for the action performer is ga (gah), and the particle for the action receiver is o(oh). So, both of the following sentences mean Mary invited John:

Mar ga Jon o sasotta. (mah-reee gah john oh sah-soht-tah) Jon o Mar ga sasotta. (john oh mah-reee gah sah-soht-tah)

Actually, ga is the subject-marking particle, and o is the direct object-marking particle. They can't be translated into English. Sorry, it's just Japanese. Other Japanese particles include kara (kah-rah), made (mah-deh), ni (nee), de (deh), to (toh), and ka(kah). Luckily, they can be translated into English words like from, until, to, with, by, at, in, on, and, andor. But each particle is translated differently depending on the context. For example, the particle decorresponds to in, by, or with in English:

Bosuton de benkysuru. (boh-soo-tohndeh behn-kyohh-soo-roo; I'll study in Boston.) Takush de iku. (tah-koo-sheee deh ee-koo; I'll go by taxi.) Fku de taberu. (fohh-koo deh tah-beh-roo; I eat with a fork.)

Translation is not always the best way to figure out a foreign language, so remember the particles in terms of their general functions, not their exact English translations. Table 1 presents Japanese particles and their various meanings. Table 1: Particles

Particle

Translation

General Function

Example

ga (gah)

No English equivalent

Specifies the subject of the sentence.

Jon ga kita. (john gah kee-tah; John came.)

o (oh)

No English equivalent

Specifies the direct object of the sentence.

Mari ga Jon o sasotta. (mah-reee gah john oh sahsoht-tah; Mary invited John.)

kara (kah-rah)

from

Specifies the starting point of the action.

Ku-ji kara benkyoshita. (koo-jee kah-rah behnkyohh-shee-tah; I studied from 9 o'clock.)

made (mahdeh)

until

Specifies the ending point of the action.

San-ji made benkyoshita. (sahn-jee mah-deh behn-kyohh-shee-tah; I studied until 3 o'clock.)

ni (nee)

to, on, at

Specifies the target of the action.

Nihon ni itta. (nee-hohn nee eet-tah; I went to Japan.) Tokyo ni tsuita. (tohh-kyohh nee tsoo-eetah; I arrived at Tokyo.)

ni (nee)

to, on, at

Specifies the time of the event.

San-ji ni tsuita. (sahn-jee nee tsoo-ee-tah; I arrived at 3 o'clock.)

e (eh)

to, toward

Specifies the direction of the action.

Tokyo e itta. (tohh-kyohh eh eet-tah; I went to/towards Tokyo.)

de (deh)

in, by, with, at

Specifies how the action takes place; indicates the location, the manner, or the background condition of the action.

Bosuton de benkyoshita. (boh-soo-tohn de behnkyohh-shee-tah; I studied in Boston.) Takushi de itta. (tah-koo-sheee deh eet-tah; I went there by taxi.) Foku de tabeta. (fohh-koo deh tah-beh-tah; I ate with a fork.)

no (noh)

's

Creates a possessive phrase or a modifier phrase.

Mari no hon (mah-reee noh hohn; Mary's book) nihongo no hon (nee-hon-goh noh hohn; a Japanese language book)

to (toh)

and, with

Lists items.

Sushi to sashimi o tabeta. (soo-shee toh sahshee-mee oh tah-beh-tah; I ate sushi and sashimi.)

to (toh)

and, with

Specifies an item with the same status as the subject noun.

Jon ga Mari to utatta. (john gah mah-reee toh ootaht-tah; John sang with Mary.)

ka (kah)

or

Lists choices.

Sushi ka sashimi o taberu. (soo-shee kah sahshee-mee oh tah-beh-roo; I will eat sushi or sashimi.)

You can have a bunch of particles in a sentence:

Mar ga kuruma de Tky e itta. (mah-reee gah koo-roo-mah deh tohh-kyohh eh eet-tah; Mary went to Tokyo by car.) Jon no otsan kara bru to osake to wain o moratta. (john noh oh-tohh-sahn kah-rah beee-roo toh oh-sahkeh toh wah-een oh moh-raht-tah; I received beer, sake, and wine from John's dad.)

Japanese nouns need these particles; they don't need articles like a and the in English. Furthermore, there's no need to specify singular or plural. Tamago (tah-mah-goh) is either an egg or eggs.

Telling the topic

English doesn't have a topic phrase, but if you put a topic phrase at the beginning of whatever you say, you can sound a lot more like a native Japanese speaker. Japanese just love to mention topics at the beginning of their sentences. At the very beginning of a statement, clarify what you're talking about state the topic of the sentence. You need to provide the listener with a heads up: What I will say from now is about topic, As for topic,or Speaking of topic. Use the particle wa (wah) to mark the topic word. Suppose you're talking about what you did yesterday. You start with the word for yesterday, kin (kee-nohh), add wa after the word to alert the listener that yesterday is your topic, and then finish the sentence. The following sentences differ in what the speaker is talking about. The statement can be about what happened yesterday, about what happened to the teacher, or about what happened to John,depending on what precedes wa:

Kin wa sens ga Jon o shikatta. (kee-nohh wah sehn-sehh gah john oh shee-kaht-tah; As for yesterday, what happened is that the teacher scolded John.) Sens wa kin Jon o shikatta. (sehn-sehh wah kee-nohh john oh shee-kaht-tah; As for the teacher, what he did yesterday was to scold John.) Jon wa sens ga kin shikatta. (john wah sehn-sehh gah kee-nohh shee-kaht-tah; As for John, what happened to him was that the teacher scolded him yesterday.)

Any noun can be the topic. The subject noun can be the topic, and the object noun can be the topic too. When a noun is both the subject of the sentence and the topic of the sentence, you use only the topic particle wa never ga wa to mark the noun as both the subject and the topic.In the same way, when a noun is the direct object as well as the topic, mark it with just wa never with both o and wa.

Expressing Gratitude and Regret in Japanese

Phrases of gratitude and apology are the most important and essential phrases in any language. Suppose a stranger holds a door open for you when you're entering a building. What do you say? Suppose you accidentally step on someone's foot. How do you say I'm sorry? This articles answers these questions.

Showing gratitude
You may already know the Japanese word arigato (ah-ree-gah-tohh; thanks), but did you know that you can use it only with family, friends, co-workers, subordinates, or strangers who look easy-going and younger than you? When talking to teachers, bosses, strangers who look older than you, and strangers who look as if they're not so easygoing, don't say arigato to mean thank you, say one of the following:

Arigato gozaimasu. (ah-ree-gah-tohh-goh-zah-ee-mah-soo) Domo arigato gozaimasu. (dohh-moh ah-ree-gah-tohh goh-zah-ee-mah-soo) Domo. (dohh-moh)

The easiest phrase of gratitude is domo an adverb that literally means indeed or very much but can be understood as thank you. It's a short, convenient, and yet polite phrase of gratitude that can be used in any context. If you want to express a greater-than-normal degree of gratitude, you can use one of the longer, more fully-spelled-out phrases, likeArigato gozaimasu or Domo arigato gozaimasu.

Apologizing
To apologize for something you've done or for causing someone pain or inconvenience, say Domo sumimasen (dohh-moh soo-mee-mah-sehn; I'm very sorry.) or just Sumimasen in Japanese. Domois an interesting adverb. Its function is to make you sound serious, and it can be used with either Arigato gozaimasu (Thank you) or Sumimasen (I'm sorry.). If you just say domo by itself, it's interpreted as thank you, but not as sorry. So, watch out! In an informal context, Gomennasai (goh-mehn-nah-sah-ee; Sorry) is just fine. To get someone's attention, say Chotto sumimasen (choht-toh soo-mee-mah-sehn; Excuse me a little)or just Sumimasen. You may have noticed that Sumimasen means both I'm sorry and Excuse me, but the context and your facial expression will clarify which one you mean. Japanese even saySumimasen in contexts where English speakers would say Thank you, as if to sayExcuse me for making you feel that you had to go to all that trouble. Talkin' the Talk Paul bumps into a woman at the airport. Woman: Itai. ee-tah-ee. Ouch! Paul: A, domo sumimasen. Daijobu desu ka. ahh, dohh-moh soo-mee-mah-sehn. dah-ee-johh-boo deh-soo kah. Oh, I'm sorry. Are you all right? Woman: E, daijobu desu. ehh, dah-ee-johh-boo deh-soo. Yes, I'm fine. Paul picks up the little package on the floor right behind the woman. Paul: Kore wa otaku no desu ka. koh-reh wah oh-tah-koo noh deh-soo kah. Is this yours?

Woman: Hai, so desu. Watashi no desu. Domo. hah-ee, sohh deh-soo. wah-tah-shee noh deh-soo. dohh-moh. Yes, it is. It's mine. Thank you. Words to Know

Arigato

ah-ree-gah-tohh

Thanks

Chotto sumimasen.

choht-toh soo-mee-mah-sehn

Excuse me.

Daijobu desu ka.

dah-ee-johh-boo deh-soo kah

Are you okay?

Domo

dohh-mo

Thank you

Domo sumimasen.

dohh-moh soo-mee-mah-sehn

I'm sorry.

Gomennasai

goh-mehn-nah-sah-ee

Sorry

Japanese Greetings and Good-Byes

By Eriko Sato from Japanese For Dummies Audio Set 3 of 10 in Series: The Essentials of Japanese Words and Phrases for Traveling When traveling in Japan, the words and phrases you'll use most frequently will be the common Japan greetings (gashi). These Japanese greetings and good-byes will quickly become second nature because you use them day in and day out with everyone you come across. In Japan, greetings are given great importance. It is considered rude to fail to greet someone or even to greet them in a lazy or offhand manner. The most common ways to greet someone in Japan are:

Konnichiwa (Hi; Good afternoon.) Ohay gozaimasu/ Ohay (Good morning [formal/informal]) Konbanwa (Good evening) Say Ohay gozaimasu to your superior instead of Ohay. And don't forget to bow when you greet him.

As you've probably noticed, people in Japan also greet each other by bowing. A small head nod is a considered casual and is used when greeting family or friends. When greeting a superior, it is a sign of respect to use a deep, longer bow: roughly a 90-degree bend at the waist. Most Japanese people don't expect foreign travelers to understand bowing etiquette and so will usually accept a nod of the head or a handshake. How are you? How's it going? How many times a day do you hear or say these brief greetings at the beginning of your conversations? So many times, in fact, that half the time, you don't even pay attention. These pleasantries are common in Japan as well. The Japanese phrase equivalent to How are you? is Genki desu ka, which literally means Are you well?

Other common ways to ask how someone is doing are

Hajimemashite. (How do you do?) O-genki desu ka. (How are you? [formal]) Genki? (How are you? [informal]) Maiku-san wa? (How about you, Mike?)

As you'd expect, when someone asks you how you're doing, there are many possible responses.

Hai, genki desu. (Yes, I'm fine.) , mm desu. (Well, so-so.) Hai, watashi mo genki desu. (Yes, I'm fine, too.) The particle mo in Watashi mo genki desu means "also."

There are also many ways to say goodbye.

Mata ashita. (See you tomorrow.) Saynara. (Goodbye.) Oyasumi nasai. (Good night.) Say Shitsurei shimasu when you're parting from your superior. It literal means is "I will be rude," but the general idea is to say "Excuse my rudeness of leaving you."

How to Ask Basic Questions in Japanese

By Eriko Sato from Japanese For Dummies Audio Set 6 of 10 in Series: The Essentials of Japanese Words and Phrases for Traveling How do you ask basic questions in Japanese? Well, Japanese interrogative words mean the same as they do for English: who, what, when, where, why, and how. By knowing basic Japanese interrogatives, you'll be able to express your questions, even without an extensive vocabulary. For example, say you're at a street market and you want find a shirt that you like. You could ask the vendor "Kono shatsu wa ikura desu ka?" ("How much is this shirt?"). But if you don't know enough vocabulary, you can simply point to the shirt and say "Ikura?" and the seller will understand that you want to know the price. Dare (dah-reh) (Who) Nani (nah-nee) (What) Itsu (ee-tsoo) (When) Doko (doh-koh) (Where) Dshite (dohh-shee-tay) (Why) D (dohh) (How)

Ikaga (ee-kah-gah) (How) Polite form. Ikura (ee-koo-rah) (How much? How many?) Dore (doh-reh) (Which one?) In Japanese, all questions Japanese end in the particle ka. Here's a look at some different ways to put these question words into a variety useful phrases.

Ano hito wa dare desu ka. (Who is that person over there?) Kore wa nan desu ka. (What is this?) Are wa nan desu ka. (What is that over there?) Are wa Fujisan desu ka. (Is that Mount Fuji?) O-namae wa nan desu ka. (What is your name?) Otearai wa doko desu ka. (Where is the restroom?) Dochira kara kimashita ka. (Where are you from?) Tanjbi wa itsu desu ka. (When is your birthday?) Itsu ikimasu ka. (When will you go [there]?) Nan-ji ni shimarimasu ka. (What time do you close?) Densha wa nan-ji nidemasu ka. (At what time does the train leave?) Chekkuauto wa nan-ji desu ka. (When is checkout time?) Kore wa ikura desu ka. (How much is this?)

Common Conversational Words and Phrases in Japanese

By Eriko Sato from Japanese For Dummies Audio Set 4 of 10 in Series: The Essentials of Japanese Words and Phrases for Traveling By mastering the basics of polite conversation, you can put yourself and the person you're talking with at ease. There are some essential conversation words and phrases that everyone should master before traveling to Japan. These words and expressions are sure to come up in most everyday conversations.

Courtesy phrases
Being polite are just as important in Japan as they are in America. The following words and phrases cover most of the pleasantries required for polite conversation. After all, learning to say the expressions of common courtesy before traveling to Japan is just good manners. Hai. (yes) e. (no; Oh, it's nothing.)

Dzo. (please) Arigat. (Thanks [informal]) Dmo arigat gozaimasu. (Thank you very much.) D itashimashite. (You're welcome.) Tabun. (Maybe.) e, ii desu. (No, thank you.) Gomennasai. (Sorry!) Sumimasen. (I'm sorry.) Chotto sumimasen. (Excuse me.) Chotto literally means "a little," but it's used to soften the expression in Chotto sumimasen. Mochiron. (of course) , s desu ka. (Oh, I see.) Hai shows agreement, and e shows disagreement. They correspond to "yes" and "no" in English if the question is affirmative, but they become reversed when the question is negative.

Phrases for travelers

There are some phrases that are particularly helpful to international travelers. Below are several phrases that might come in handy during your stay in Japan.

Nihongo ga wakarimasen. (I don't understand Japanese.) Nihongo ga amari hanasemasen. (I don't speak Japanese well.) M ichido itte kudasai. (Can you say it again?) M ichido onegai shimasu. (One more time, please.) Yukkuri onegai shimasu. (Slowly, please.) Chotto tasukete kudasai. (Help me, please.) Eigo ga wakarimasu ka. (Do you understand English?) "Train" wa Nihongo de nan desu ka. (How do you say "train" in Japanese?) Chotto wakarimasen. (I don't know.) Wakarimasen can mean either "I don't know" or "I don't understand." When you mean I don't know, add chotto to soften it.

Daijbu desu ka. (Are you all right?)

Hai, daijbu desu. (Yes, I'm all right.)

How to Make Introductions in Japanese

By Eriko Sato from Japanese For Dummies Audio Set Learning the proper way to make introductions in Japanese can help you get off to the right start. The Japanese culture is more formal than American English. Consequently, introductions in Japanese follow more of a pattern than they sometimes do in the United States. If you know someone who can introduce you to the others in a group that is best. But if you don't know anyone, you can always introduce yourself. Say Totsuzen desu ga, jiko shkai sasete kudasai(Pardon me, may I introduce myself.) to get things started. 1. Start with a greeting. The simplest greeting is Konnichiwa, which means Hello or Good Afternoon. 2. Introduce yourself. The two most common ways to introduce yourself are Watashi no namae wa __________ desu. (My name is __________.) or Watashi wa Sumisu __________ desu (I'm __________.). 3. Inquire about his or her name. Use the more formal form because you're meeting the person for the first time: O-namae wa nan desu ka. (What's your name?) O-namae wa? (Your name?) Place a respectful title after other people's names, but not after your own name. San is the most commonly used respectful title placed after other people's family names or given names, regardless of their gender or marital status. Sama is a formal respectful title that you use after family names of your clients, customers, or those to whom respect is due. When addressing your superiors, place their job titles, if available, after their family name, instead of using respectful titles. 1. After they tell you their name you should express pleasure. Common ways to express this are Yoroshiku. (Nice to meet you.) Yoroshiku onegai itashimasu. (It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance. These steps cover the basic introduction process. But you don't need to stop; there you could also take this opportunity to talk about where each of you is from. To tell them where you're from, say Amerika kara desu. (I'm from America.) To ask where the person is from, you can say Dochira kara desu ka. (Where are you from?) If you want to talk about where you live on the other hand, you can sayDoko ni sunde imasu ka. (Where do you live?) Put the steps together and see how it comes together in a conversation. Angela: Konnichiwa. Watashi no namae wa Angela desu. (Hello. My name is Angela.) Kenji: Watashi wa Kenji desu. (I'm Kenji.)

Angela: Yoroshiku. (Nice to meet you!) Kenji: Kochira koso. (Likewise.) Angela: Watashi wa Amerikajin desu. Dochira kara desu ka. (I'm American. Where are you from?) Kenji: Shusshin wa Tky desu. saka de sodachimashita. (I was born in Tokyo. I grew up in Osaka.) Amerika no dochira kara desu ka. (Where in the United States are you from?) Angela: San Furanshisuko kara desu. (I'm from San Francisco.) Kenji-san, kochira wa watashi no tomodachi desu. Steven-san desu. (Kenji, this is my friend. This is Steven.) Kenji: Yoroshiku onegai itashimasu. (It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance.) Steven: Kochira koso. (Likewise.)

How to Make Small Talk in Japanese

By Eriko Sato from Japanese For Dummies Audio Set Making small talk in Japanese is just the same as in English. Touch on familiar topics like jobs, sports, children just say it in Japanese! Small talk describes the brief conversations that you have with people you don't know well. Small talk is where friendships are made. After the necessary introductions, small talk is really just a question of sharing information about yourself and asking the other person questions about themselves. The following phrases will come in handy when you're chitchatting with someone new.

Place kara kimashita. (I am from Place) Amerika kara desu. (I'm from America.) Amerika no dochira kara desu ka. (Where in the United States are you from?) Furorida kara kimashita. (I am from Florida.) Dochira kara kimashita ka. (Where are you from?) Oshigoto wa nan desu ka. (What is your profession?) Nan-sai desu ka. (How old are you?) Okosan wa nan-nin irasshaimasu ka. (How many children do you have?) Watashi wa kodomo ga hito-ri imasu. (I have one child.) Okosan no o-namae wa nan desu ka. (What is your child's name?) Watashi wa gakusei desu. (I'm a student.)

Personal Interests
Many friendships are forged on the bond of common interests. You can use the following phrases to compare interests when making small talk.

Shumi wa nan desu ka. (What do you like to do for fun?)

Suptsu wa shimasu ka. (Do you play sports?) Gorufu o shimasu. (I play golf.) Sakk o shimasu. (I play soccer.)

How to Count in Japanese

By Eriko Sato from Japanese For Dummies Audio Set Learning numbers and counting in Japanese is simplified because the Japanese number system is quite logical. The entire number system is based on counting the number of tens and then adding the ones. For example, 11 is j -ichi, which is 10 (j) plus 1 (ichi). 21 is ni-j-ichi, which is 2 (ni) times 10 (j) plus 1 (ichi). When you're counting numbers in order, you'll use this pronunciation.

1 to 99

ichi

ni

san

shi or yon

go

roku

shichi or nana

hachi

ky

10

jichi

11

jni

12

jsan

13

jshi or jyon

14

jgo

15

jroku

16

jshichi or jnana

17

jhachi

18

jky or jku

19

nij

20

nijichi

21

nijni

22

nijsan

23

sanj

30

sanjichi

31

sanjni

32

yonj

40

goj

50

rokuj

60

nanaj

70

hachij

80

kyj

90

kyjky

99

Counting larger numbers is just a question of adding the number of hundreds, thousands, and so on, in front of the same patterns as for numbers 1-99. For example, the number 150 is pronounced as hyakugoju, which is 1 hyaku plus 50 (goj).

100 and higher

100

hyaku

101

hyakuichi

102

hyakuni

150

hyakugoju

500

gohyaku

999

ky-hyaku-ky-j-ky

1,000

sen

When the numbers are followed by a suffix, such as ji (o'clock) and mai (sheets of), the numbers might be read differently.

Japanese For Dummies

From Japanese For Dummies, 2nd Edition by Eriko Sato
If you're learning Japanese, you need the basics numbers, questions, and phrasesfor meeting, greeting, and being polite. In Japanese, verbs change according to whether they're negative or affirmative but not according to the person who's the subject of the action. Japanese also has particles rather than the articles and prepositions of English all of which adds up to a fascinating learning experience.

Numbers in Japanese
One of the most basic skills in picking up any new language, including Japanese, is learning to count. The following table shows Japanese numbers from 1 to 20 and selected higher numbers along with the pronunciations in parentheses.

Polite Phrases in Japanese

The Japanese place a premium on politeness, so the Japanese language includes key phrases to keep conversation on a polite footing. The following list sets out common courteous Japanese phrases and questions:

Japanese Phrases for Meeting and Greeting

The whole point of learning Japanese is to be able to converse, right? Knowing Japanese phrases for meeting, greeting, and saying good-bye are important parts of conversation. Here are some phrases you'll need when you're meeting and greeting in Japanese:

How to Ask Questions in Japanese

As you travel in Japan and speak Japanese to everyone you meet, you need to ask questions. The standard who, what, when, where, and why are in the following list, along with a few other useful questions.

Japanese Grammar: Particles

English grammar has articles and prepositions, but Japanese grammar has particles that follow a noun to show the noun's function. Japanese particles denote such things as the topic of the sentence; the start point, end point, and direction of the action; the tools and means of the action; and even the subject and direct object of the sentence. The following table shows the Japanese particles with pronunciations in parentheses, their English equivalents (if one exists), and their roles.

Japanese Verb Forms

To understand any language, including Japanese, you need to know verbs the words that convey action. Like English verbs, Japanese verbs have a few eccentricities, so you need to keep a few facts in mind when you're dealing with Japanese verbs:

Habitual actions and future actions use the same verb form, so taberu means I eat and I will eat.(You can think of it as the Japanese equivalent of present tense.)

You don't conjugate according to person. It doesn't matter who's eating you use taberu for I eat,you eat, he/she/it eats, We eat, and they eat.

Use the stem form if you're adding a suffix to show politeness or another condition. Use the te-form if you're adding another verb or an auxiliary verb to the main verb. In Japanese, you don't conjugate verbs according to person; rather, you use different forms for present and past tenses, for affirmative and negative statements, for polite and informal speech, and to convey respect. The following table shows the various forms of taberu (to eat).